This is so good and so awful, Anna. It's so well written, the description, the steady pace, building up the daughter mother trust, and all I was thinking as it the tension built was what betrayal. What terrible terrible betrayal. The description of the finger nails!! I am not sure I will be able to shake that from my head for the rest of the afternoon. Great writing and such important work.
Thanks Lily, as you read the rest of the book you will understand that it isn’t a betrayal that it first appears in terms of why women allow their daughters to be cut. But yes, this prologue was all about building tension and showing the love that was heaped on Hibo that morning before such horrors occurred.
Oh my God... This piece is as unbearable as it is essential. A horrific subject beautifully rendered. I feel simultaneously compelled to read the book and filled with a vain wish that it didn't have to exist... Thank you for sharing this, Anna, and for ensuring that this terrible story saw the light of day.
Oh God that was somehow simultaneously compelling and I readable. The literary equivalent of watching a film through my fingertips. Stunning writing, horrific subject matter, beautifully handled. As Lily Dunn says, it’s the build up. Despite knowing where it would end, I still hoped for a different outcome with every sentence. Important work indeed and tremendous bravery from both original storyteller and ghost ❤️
I remember reading, or attempting to read, some decades ago, a book on FGM by an Egyptian author. I was unable to read it. From the opening chapter I was already feeling so sick, so physically overwhelmed with revulsion... important work! Thank you for sharing
I hope you’ve managed to read this prologue. There is nothing there you need to fear, it actually builds the idea of horror through expressions of love.
This is so good and so awful, Anna. It's so well written, the description, the steady pace, building up the daughter mother trust, and all I was thinking as it the tension built was what betrayal. What terrible terrible betrayal. The description of the finger nails!! I am not sure I will be able to shake that from my head for the rest of the afternoon. Great writing and such important work.
Thanks Lily, as you read the rest of the book you will understand that it isn’t a betrayal that it first appears in terms of why women allow their daughters to be cut. But yes, this prologue was all about building tension and showing the love that was heaped on Hibo that morning before such horrors occurred.
Oh my God... This piece is as unbearable as it is essential. A horrific subject beautifully rendered. I feel simultaneously compelled to read the book and filled with a vain wish that it didn't have to exist... Thank you for sharing this, Anna, and for ensuring that this terrible story saw the light of day.
Oh God that was somehow simultaneously compelling and I readable. The literary equivalent of watching a film through my fingertips. Stunning writing, horrific subject matter, beautifully handled. As Lily Dunn says, it’s the build up. Despite knowing where it would end, I still hoped for a different outcome with every sentence. Important work indeed and tremendous bravery from both original storyteller and ghost ❤️
Thank you, Emma 🙏🏼❤️
I remember reading, or attempting to read, some decades ago, a book on FGM by an Egyptian author. I was unable to read it. From the opening chapter I was already feeling so sick, so physically overwhelmed with revulsion... important work! Thank you for sharing
I hope you’ve managed to read this prologue. There is nothing there you need to fear, it actually builds the idea of horror through expressions of love.
I did! And it's very well written. It takes me straight into the heart and soul and body of the little girl.
Thank you, Veronika. I’m glad you managed it.